Opening Doors
by AnHeiressofaSOLDIER
Summary: Terra, a zoologist, has bitten off more than he can chew. Getting a strange call from a girl named Olette, he's asked to come to a mental asylum and to help with a girl: a girl who's treated as a beast more than anything else. And as a plot begins to make itself known, Terra is quick to realize that disappearances, memory issues, and everything else questionable is the beginning.
1. Preface

**Opening Doors**

 **Preface:**

Always and forever... I'd known I'd be betrayed.

I'd been told that from the start, and so it had led to me withdrawing deep into myself, but even so...

I'd had hope that things would end up differently. And in the past months I'd had more fun than any one person could hope to dream of, but now-

Now I was beginning to hurtle upwards, upwards, upwards, but it felt more like falling than anything.

As it happened, heights were my worst fear, and as darkness began lapping at my consciousness, it felt to me that I was once again touching the ascending waves from so long ago.

That- that was enough for me to pass on now. It would have to be...

Any second now, I knew that I was finally going to die. And yet... I didn't regret anything.

After all, this was much the best thing all around: the truest thing I had ever attempted, even.

And all this... it would well be worth it, right? Elsewise, I knew that my fate would be much worse than death, but I...

I did this for love, and I couldn't lose any of my newfound faith now.

My special someone would never know of my sacrifice, I thought with a saddened smile on my face, but it was better that way. And now I finally consigned myself to it.

I would... I would let them all dream a little while longer, and in this they would stay in a place that I wished I could go back to more than anything.

Yes, I'd been betrayed, but the real sin had come from myself.

In my mind's eye, I held onto yellow skies, gorgeous waters, and magical creatures, but more importantly than that... I finally forewent logic.

And now, in the end, I had finally found peace.

I shut my eyes, but only so that they could see something else and new: so that they could see…


	2. Xion's Just Peculiar, Not Insane

**Chapter One: Xion's Just Peculiar, Not Insane**

On his fingers, Terra was ticking off the items he knew he needed to be taking for his trip: he'd be gone for many days-doing something completely different than he was used to-and he truly hoped he had the right handle on what to bring.

Usually? The brunet's profession was with animals-something he'd been more than fine with it staying, Terra thought as he grabbed his duffel bag off of his yellow vanity and began making his way outside.

However, when the kind woman named "Olette" had called him, and made her offer, he'd found that he couldn't rightfully refuse.

And so, now Terra was going to check out the new job opportunity... at least for a little while.

Eventually, Terra really hoped he'd get back to the life of zoology that he loved so much, but he'd just have to see, he guessed.

And stopping over the threshold, to give his childhood home just one final look, Terra quickly bid everything around him-even the beautiful autumn weather-a quick goodbye.

He would... miss the jackets he'd used to have to wear over the slight rain, but he Terra knew that it was hopefully for the best.

And as Terra finally ended up hiking, he progressed along way-going alongside wavy creeks, brown leaves and trees in every which way, and some beavers even making a home for themselves.

The yellow sky above him—with specks of brown in it, because of the time of day-seemed to mix flawlessly with the woods and trails that surrounded him, Terra thought.

He even allowed himself to breathe in the scent of the fall's crisp leaves just one last time, but...

He reminded himself he needed to focus on such trivial things later. Right now what really mattered was the map he had in hand, that the leaves kept trying to traverse over-as if trying to blind his eyes to it.

At this particular thought, Terra could only stop and blink, confused: wondering just when the heck his thoughts had proved to become so poetic, but whatever.

And now, as if giving up on their vendetta against him, the leaves finally gave up on their vendetta against him and joined the wind.

Finally, Terra could see that he needed to go to the east for quite some time. And so he did, traversing through two hills and valleys. Then and only then did the animal worker finally see it: the large Tricourto dragon horn.

The magenta, almost pyramid shaped specimen was planted firmly into the ground, which wasn't much of a surprised to Terra, as he knew that a lot of Melovyians made their buildings out of the stuff. It was said that anyone who entered into a deceased dragon's horn-that was very filmy and slimy, like a membrane to something would be-they could then enter the being's previous memories.

After all, Dragons were quite magical, so stealing something so close to their mind-the central point of such activity-allowed for humans to do much of their own bewitching in the areas.

With proper training, even, some people could even shape the memory to be _anything_ that they wanted it to be, and that was why-

Well, that was the exact reason the building trade had started, Terra assumed. Anyone who made such a place out of a Tricourto, after all, had complete control over the place, and thus only those allowed entrance could emerge into it.

But even all of that (slightly troubling information) being taken into account, Terra for the life of him couldn't figure out why a _hospital_ would be made out of the thing. Tricourtos were extremely rare, as it were-and hunting them for their horns was even strictly prohibited-so how the hospital had gotten their hands on one, Terra couldn't even begin to know. Part of him, too, didn't think that he wanted to.

Was the place he was going to be practicing at quite prestigious, then, Terra wondered-draping a hand over his chin in thought?

If nothing else, they seemed to have some pretty scary connections. Terra shivered a bit at that particular thought of his, but ended up stepping through the animal fossil-err... portal-anyway.

And he would- he would never get over the disconcerting feeling of being shot up in the air-and seeming going through all of the monster's recollections-for as long as he lived, he knew.

As what was left of the Tricourto pricked at Terra's mind, he was able to understand the opportunity that it was presenting him with.

If he wanted to, he knew he'd be able to go into the beast's memory and fly with it, but as Tricourtos were much more dangerous than what Terra was used to, he knew it was best to just let the moment pass.

Swiftly coming upon the place he was aiming for now-and really where he was truthfully being beckoned to-Terra took a cautious step out of the jell-o like substance he was encased it, and finally came out to a normal place: an altered memory, as it were.

And the memory... it had been altered into what appeared to be a playroom: there seemed to be no better way to describe it.

A fire roared in a hearth at the corner of the room, and a long table had just been recently brought into it-if the long and fresh tracks on the shag, red carpet were anything to go by.

As for the table itself, it seemed to be full to the brim with art supplies, but other than it the room was vacant.

Taking in the young girl that was sitting there-with chopped black hair that looked like she had taken a pair of scissors to it herself, and with jewel blue eyes-Terra couldn't help but feel bad about her state of being: it seemed like a lonely one indeed.

Shaking his head to rid it of such traitorous thoughts about his employer all ready, Terra turned to the old, brunette standing-who seemed to be wearing pigtails, of all things-and gave her a small smile... before more excitedly going over to try and shake hands with who he assumed to be "Xion".

Olette, as that was who Terra assumed that she was, laughed throatily at his gesture, though it seemed to be somewhat off.

"You won't be needing any of the stuff you brought, I don't think," Olette explained-a very scratchy tone to her voice, but one that seemed to remind Terra of oranges and citrus instead of straight up malice.

Meanwhile, Xion still hadn't returned Terra's handshake, and rather seemed to be ignoring his presence completely, as she worked on whatever it was that had interested her.

"Miss Xion _tends_ to herself, but doesn't do more than that. Though I'd be quite interested and elated to see her mess with the stuff in your bag, to be honest."

At that oh so wonderful news, Terra ran a hand through his mousy hair, and pulled his bangs out of his cobalt eyes to better assess.

Olette, as it happened, was now giving him her hand to shake. And though Terra _did_ shake it with much gusto-since if his charge really couldn't pay any attention to him at all, he'd take what contact he could get-the action really wasn't what held his attention right now.

"You say..." Terra began, looking the green-eyed girl in the eyes, and all ready cursing himself for how heartless and accusing his next words would sound. "You say that this girl has lost her mind, right? Then why not call for a psychologist, then? I just can't understand why your boss thinks that _I'm_ the best for this impending situation."

As Terra looked back over to Xion-who seemed to have black marker all over her face, as she stuck her tongue out focusing hard on something-Terra found that he felt _completely_ inadequate for the situation. Just what could he promise this young girl, anyway? What could he at all do for her, except to look into her sapphire eyes and wish that she had it better in life?

Olette, though it went unnoticed by Terra, shifted her weight uncomfortably. "My... employer insists that she not interact with people, I'm afraid, as he sees her more of a simple animal. It's a harsh thing to even _consider_ , really, and unfortunately I'm not even at a place that I can combat it. Xion _is_ a really sweet girl, though, if not a tad bit abnormal."

Terra-now once again interested in looking at Xion-notices that she seems to be doing something similar to origami now, but somewhat different, too.

And seeing no harm in that, and definitely not understanding how anyone could even _classify_ the young fifteen-year-old as being close to a beast-Terra begrudgingly returned his attention to Olette: really allowing himself to take her in for the first time.

Her skin was a bit on the darker side-with some age spots, Terra assumed-and she wore a flowery print that most people wouldn't dare to anymore, but other than those things she still seemed pretty young.

However, as she began hugging her torso, almost with a vengeance, Terra got the impression that she must have been self-conscious about the baby weight she had once had there, and maybe something else... He narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

That mark that the woman was desperately trying to keep hidden... she had just recently been infected with lycanthropy, hadn't she? Having studied some of the man-wolfs himself, Terra knew well that werewolves always ended up with a bite that _looked_ like a wolf's head, if the curse had truly been passed onto them.

Terra's dark blue eyes met with Olette's own jade ones, and he suddenly got the impression that she was internally challenging him to say the ultimate insult-that maybe he should've been taking care of _her_ , since she was an animal.

And honestly? With how badly Xion seemed to be treated, he was more than half-tempted to say such a thing. But knowing how much other people made werewolves suffer on a daily basis, he promptly kept his mouth shut.

"Who _is_ your employer, if I might ask?"

And if Terra had at all expected that Miss Olette would be happy about the subject change, he would have been sadly mistaken. Instead, her eyes filled with a carefully chosen vacancy that could've even rivaled Xion's.

"Wh-who can say, really? But anyway, you'll now be required to keep reports on Xion... Or at least I would like you to do that, personally. Her true guardian doesn't care about her, either way, but... If you really want to try bringing her out of her shell- Well..."

And just like that, the horror for the job he'd just chosen seemed to hit Terra all at once.

He- he wasn't cut out for this kind of thing at all! First off, just seeing another person in such a sad state would be enough to send anyone off the deep end, Terra thought-looking at the far too vacant walls that seemed to beg to cause insanity-but he also had no idea how to monitor a person's mental progresses! Just what the fuck had he gotten himself into, Terra thought as he bared his teeth?

And just as he did that, Terra thought that maybe there was a moment that Xion had halted her busy work to look up at him, but it must have been a trick of the light, or something.

"This kind of idea... were you maybe once Xion's caretaker, Miss Olette? Did you do something similar for her?"

There seemed to be a battle going on behind Olette's eyes, Terra noticed, as she undoubtedly wondered how much she could get away with telling him. But finally, her goodness must have won out, because with a truthful cadence to her voice, she told Terra that, "I did try to be here for her some, but mostly I could only be temporarily. I've always had other duties to attend to, but... since Xion seems such a lonely girl, I try to come when I can... When I'm not worrying over my son, Pence, in the kitchens, that is."

For some reason-a reason that Terra will only guess at later-Olette's words seemed to set Xion off, and she was quick to begin ripping to shreds the papers she'd just been so diligently working on.

And oddly enough... such an action from her seemed to be more a surprise to Olette, than it was to Terra himself: another suspicious thing he'd make sure to not later.

"Miss... Miss Noi?" Terra began trying to placate her, walking closer to her chair. He instantly cursed himself, though, for the backwards nickname sounded even stupid to his own ears, and what if his charge ended up hating it?" "You don't... you don't have to rip up your pretty art work to get our attention. And I'm sure Miss Olette will be back to see you sooner than you know, so relax, okay?"

And as Terra gingerly took a seat beside Xion-in the only other chair in the room-he was instantly surprised to see how coherent she appeared close up. Just what did _that_ mean?

And apparently Olette was surprised at just how well the situation had ended up, and the strange bond he was all ready attempting to reach with Xion, because half to herself she echoed Terra's "Noi," seeming quite thoughtful.

Then, with a warm smile warming up her face-that seemed to make Terra think more of peaches and cream oatmeal, than the sharp tangerines he'd been imagining her as before-she announced, "I'll be going now," and presumably headed out towards the kitchen-long before Terra could _even_ think about protesting.

There was a part of Terra that instantly wanted to go after Olette to beg her to stay-as he really didn't want to lose the only semblance of normalcy he'd found in this whole situation-but he fights against the idea with much success.

Then, Terra decided to drag his chair over towards the fireplace-and to purposefully ignore the other track marks on the ground-and to get to work.

And as if somewhat reacting to Terra's actions with her own, Xion seemed to give up on folding paper, and instead began dabbing on a sketchbook: she didn't change what she was doing again, though, and so Terra assumed it had to be time for him to start on his reports.

He was temporarily halted, in having to go over to Xion's work space to get a paper and a pen, but once he had all of that-and his laptop to use as a desk for everything-he began filling out his thoughts: making a mental note, too, to get his own desk for when he had to be here.

And only much later on would Terra understand just how much Xion had stared at him in the past, without his knowing: a moment such as now.

 **October 11** **th** **, 2015:**

 **Xion seems much smarter to me than what Olette seemed to hint at. When I was walking past her just now, I noticed that though she seems to be lost when doing origami, she still strives for art: it's just the creases in the paper themselves that need to be looked at. Not the final product. Perhaps... perhaps this is the way she sees the entire world, and perhaps we all should as well.**

 **I also can't help noting how small and young looking she is. Just what could have happened to the girl to have her end up like this, I wonder?**

 **In any case... she seems far from insane to me, and the people here seem hell-bent on humiliating the poor girl.**

 **The frock she's forced to wear, for example, is just disgraceful. To them, she seems much more an animal, tha-**

"My name _is_ 'Xion', by the way, but I really prefer to be called 'Xi-Xi'."

The pen that Terra had been holding fell out of his hand with a loud _thud_ , and he looked at Xion with so much shock, that he was sure something had to be flying into his open, gaping mouth.

Almost, Terra could almost convince himself that she really hadn't spoken at all-and that he was just once again imagining things-except her lips had moved.

And now, saying nothing else, Xion went back to whatever she was working on without another word.

Terra, meanwhile, decided that maybe he should try observing the girl a bit more, before attempting to continue the report.

So, instead of trying to be all scientific and smart (something Terra had never been particularly good at, if he was being honest with himself), he began writing a letter to his family.

Though Terra missed them greatly, he felt as though he hadn't heard from them at all lately. Granted, that was just what happened with age, but he wondered how his sister-in-law, Rinoa, was doing with the baby. Furthermore, how was Rapunzel doing in the frying pan business? How was his friend Sota-who was like a brother to him, really-doing in learning martial arts for Nao? Terra made sure to ask all these things in his message, but then:

"Terra... that is your name, isn't it? Can you- can you do a handstand at all, I wonder?"

Okay, Terra thought-feeling much like he'd just seen a ghost-there was absolutely no denying that he'd heard something this time. First off, that was too much of a random thing for him to _ever_ think to himself, but most of all Xion didn't even seem to be hiding her queries now.

The girl was looking at him with a curious expression on her face, Terra saw; it was if she was really eager for an answer, but also about to try and hide behind her bangs and pretend she hadn't done this at all.

"Uhh... probably not, Miss Xion: I've never been _that_ sporty, per se. But some animals I know can do that sort of thing, and a whole host of other tricks."

Terra could tell by how Xion seemed to be leaning out of her chair, and closer to his direction, that she wanted to ask more, but she does not. She just ended up going back to her work, pretending that nothing had at all happened, and Terra finally began noticing that the girl seemed to have other drawings in a small drawer he hadn't noticed before.

There aren't... there weren't a lot of pictures in the little cubby hole, though-and actually, a loose panel in the floor seemed a better way to describe it to Terra-and he wondered if maybe Xion didn't draw more, because she was afraid she had no place to put them? Best to volunteer then, Terra quickly decided.

"You know, Miss Xion, if you're serious about this whole... art thing, I can tape some of your drawings to the walls here, if you wish. Might even brighten the place up some," _which it really needs_ , Terra almost added on the end there, but had thought better of it.

Even from a distance, as she paused to pick up a violet crayon, Terra could see her lips turn up into a reluctant smile. And as she did this, he decided that he would make it his mission while he was here to see it again. Fifteen-year-olds shouldn't have had lives such as this, after all.

"Please call me 'Xi-Xi'," Xion answered back, surprising Terra, as she began scrubbing out parts of her drawing-via an eraser-with a vengeance.

A blink on Terra's part, as he sat up straighter and began regarding Xion more, and then: "Only if you call me 'Ra'."

...Okay, so Terra was really embarrassed by the idea of that nickname-it was something he'd only ever wanted as a child, as it had sounded like the battle cries he'd loved to imitate-but even if it was super dumb, Terra thought that if it led to Xion opening up, it would well be worth the trouble to him.

Xion nodded her head jerkily, at Terra's request, but did no more. And hoping that he'd gotten enough credit as to not spook her now, he got up from the very uncomfortable kitchen chair (or that's where he assumed it was from, anyway), and took a gander at what she was drawing.

Instantly, Terra had to chuckle when he saw it. So that was why she'd been asking him about handstands!

Maybe her thought processes _weren't_ so questionable after all...

Yeah... everything in Xion's drawing was definitely as it should've been, except for one thing: there were no fluffy, sunset colored clouds to be seen at all.

Rather, the sky seemed to be one massive prison to Terra, and as he noted the drawing reflected in Xion's eyes, he realized that it wasn't the sky being imprisoned, but her.

And not liking where those particular thoughts were going at all, Terra went back to finishing the last of his report, and then rested for a while.

...

He must've fallen asleep, is the only explanation that Terra can figure out later on, for the next thing he knows, the scratching of Xion's... err Xi-Xi's crayons hitting the paper is gone.

Of course the next course of action, was to look towards the table she'd been sitting at for so long, and to notice that there's something missing there, too. Or more accurately: a person.

Panic settling into his veins, as he tried to get up from the now too comfy seat, Terra wondered if this was something normal for the ebony-haired girl to do. Surely she had to go to the bathroom and to go get food sometimes, right?

Well, there was no time to find out like the present, was there? So after saying a silent prayer to himself, Terra headed off in the direction he'd seen Olette girl earlier, and began looking for a shock of black anywhere.

Problem number one: the entire hall that he was now in was dimly lit and nothing but raven colored, so Terra doubted he'd really see Xion in here, unless she were to be on top of him.

Really, the stupid white specks of white at the top of the tiled walls did nothing to illuminate this elongated area, Terra thought balefully. Just why did everything have to be so difficult lately?!

Once again wondering just what the hell he'd gotten into with all of this, Terra began calling out Xion's preferred nickname-hoping that if nothing else, maybe she'd respond to that. "Umm... Xi-Xi? Miss Xi-Xi? Where have you gotten to? Are you well?"

"Aww, man! Why are you calling out like that? Don'chu know you'll wake everyone in the castle? Something you _don't_ want to do."

Terra—being rather manly, if he said so himself—started at the intrusion of a young boy on the scene.

Terra could just barely make him out, but he seemed to be a bit plumper, with brown hair that fell over a headband like a pineapple's leaves, and some owlish brown eyes. Noting the slight green that seemed to be in the boy's eyes, though, Terra had a sinking suspicion of who he was now dealing with, but he'd let the person tell him that, if it was true. For now, Terra was just going to quietly observe him with crossed arms, and his head craned to the side.

"I'm Pence," the boy with the high-pitched voice confirmed Terra's suspicion, as he began pulling him closer to a light at the end of the corridor. "You met my mom, Olette, earlier today. I help out in the kitchen, you see, and your ward is in there, so don't worry."

" _My_ ward?" Terra choked out, feeling suddenly incredulous. Xion was most _definitely_ not that. And once again, Terra had to bulk at just how the poor girl was treated in this makeshift home of hers. Really, Pence was young, Terra knew-so maybe he shouldn't have been getting mad at him for referring to Xion as if she was such property-but he couldn't help but resent him the slightest bit.

Terra followed him down the winding and twisting pathways, anyway-feeling quite defiant, though doing his best to fight it.

Finally, Pence paused in his movements, with what looked to be a shocked appearance on his face. Even where they are now it's still dark, and Terra can only make a few things out, but he can sense the disbelieving look on the thirteen-year-old's face, when he mumbles, "You don't know?" The ten year old says flabbergasted.

In all honesty, Terra is starting to respect Pence now, for if nothing else... there was a sad note in his voice when he had said that, but Terra still can't help but be doubtful, anyway.

Turning his face away from Pence, so that he wouldn't have to deny the kid's belief to his face, Terra let his own viewpoint be known. "Look, I'm sorry, Pence-and I know what you must be told here-but if you're saying that Miss Xion is nothing more than an _insane_ ward, then I'm going to have to disagree. I can tell that she's not crazy; she's jus-"

"But she _is_ , Sir," Pence argues right back, as the two of them finally make it into the mess hall: a room with long, metallic tables, like the one in Xion's own room-and a brown floor that doesn't look sanitary in the least. "She's been here for at least as long as I've been. Maybe even longer. And there have been... incidents."

" _Incidents_?" Terra growled, ice filing into his chest, as he now worried if maybe the girl would murder him or something. Seriously: _just what_ had he been thinking agreeing to this?!

Maybe… maybe all of this was just one big mistake, Terra thought, as he watched Pence dance over to the serving counter to reach for a tub of broth behind it.

And if... if there truly _was_ something wrong with the girl, then how was he to help her when she'd all ready tricked him so? What did that say about his own mentality, even?

"One incident!" Pence exclaimed, coming back with the chicken noodle soup and two other bowls he'd just obtained.

Clearly he'd said something he shouldn't have and was now trying to backtrack, Terra thought bitterly.

"And I'm not supposed to say anything, so… Anyway, I'm sure that Miss Xion has to be somewhere in this room, so let's just find her, okay?"

And with that, Pence began scrambling back to where all the appliances were hidden at the back of the place. And if Terra hadn't known better, he would've thought the devil himself was at the big boy's heels.

Who knew? Maybe he actually was...Maybe he was.

And it was with that particular thought that Terra followed Pence towards the ovens. And in doing so, he somehow ended up running into a girl.

Terra and the stranger both fall to the ground beneath them-a pea green color, that while better than the eggshell brown outside is still unappealing to Terra-but it was the woman who fell a lot harder and less dignified.

Terra helped the mystery girl up as quick as he was able to then, feeling _awful_ about everything, and something- something seemed to be pricking at the back of his mind, but he wasn't at all sure of what.

After having finally succeeded in dusting her periwinkle dress off, Terra finally got a good look at the redhead with the dancing violet eyes, and soft smile, and found that she was really quite gorgeous.

"Excuse me, Sir," the girl said in a voice that Terra instantly found to be sunshine incarnate, for the way that it made him feel so happy inside. "I was just hurrying to get out of here, you see-since there have been _so_ many disappearances lately-but I ended up being too much of a ditz. I apologize."

"Disappearances?" Terra shocked himself by saying, as he really didn't want to have to deal with this at all, and mostly he wanted to let the girl know that it was all right. But...

For one bizarre moment, Terra had to wonder if people were just trying to enter this horn, without an invitation, and getting lost in the dragon's memories. But the haunted look in the ginger's gaze was more than enough to show him that that wasn't the case. Terra frowned.

"Yes. People suspect that foul play has to be involved here somehow, and my employer is now prompting me to make this nightmare public, but I-

"But you should really stop talking now, Kairi!" Pence jumped into the conversation-a look of fear in his expression that Terra didn't like much at all.

Seeming to agree to this, the Kairi girl gave Pence a nod-with a questioning set to her face, mind you-before she turned to Terra and gave him a slight bow and grin. Then, she was hurrying past them just like that.

Meanwhile, Pence was now laughing whole-heartedly at something, and when Terra raised an eyebrow at him, he just simply explained that, "It just seems that everyone has a problem of saying too much around you. Nothing too serious. And... for me saying that, I bet Kairi heard it-with her bat-like hearing-and that now she's going to try and straighten my hair in retribution, or something.."

And despite himself, Terra couldn't help but laugh at that-even nudging Pence in the stomach some, as he allowed himself, just for one moment, to pretend that everything in his world was nice and good. "Why do I get the feeling that she treats you like a kid, all the while that you have a crush on her?"

Pence was quick to shoot Terra a look, easily confirming his suspicion with the simple action, but it was Xion's guarded sounding voice that really ended up answering his question, "Don't you realize that Kairi will never have a thing for you, Pence? We all know that she has a thing for tall, dark, and handsome."

Whirling around, so fast that Terra was sure he had to have given himself whiplash, he noted that Xion had been blending in with the dark salad bar the entire time. Just what was her deal, Terra wondered, as he tried to read something-anything-in her eyes, but got nothing but static?

And Pence-no doubt noticing something that Terra himself couldn't yet-gasped in shock, before turning to Terra and demanding, "Just what did you do with her?!"

 **Author's Note: A favorite story of mine that I wrote and finished a LONG time ago. So, yes: this will most definitely be finished: I'm just going to need to find to edit all the chapters before posting them. Hope to see you all again soon:)**

 **Also… I stayed up all night/morning editing these two chapters—because I swear I'm crazy—so if you see any weird errors, just know it's because of my sleep depravation or fanfiction being wonky.**

 **Thanks for making it this far!**

 **-Shanna**


	3. Xion Has Odd Tendencies

**Chapter Two: Xion Has Odd Tendencies**

It was quiet in the room after that. Xion ate some of her rice, with a set of chopsticks, and the smell of even more food being cooked in the kitchen wafted over to them.

Xion was eating the dish as if she'd never before eaten in her life, and at once Terra found himself clenching his hands into fists.

Also... he had to wonder just why she was sitting so close to the kitchen, where surely she could enter it to get an even hardier meal, instead of going into it.

And for that matter, as Terra turned to face him, he had to wonder why Pence was so silent now. The kid didn't seem like the kind to usually sober up, but then again... what did he know? And now the young boy even seemed to be peeling red paint off a table while deep in thought?

As it happened, Terra found that he wished to be something similar to what Pence was. At least then he would have been doing something! But, no... it would be best to stay down low and let information come to him when it was deemed necessary.

Sitting down at the table beside Pence-and all the while keeping an eye on Xion, who seemed to be oddly calm-Terra tried to figure just how many people had to live in this place. The kitchen, for one, seemed to be a lot like a small cafeteria, so shouldn't that imply that there were a lot of employees? All under a mysterious employer?

And as for the spaghetti sauce colored wallpaper that was being ripped off the wall in vicious tears? Well, such a thing only worsened when the chef came storming out of the kitchen, slamming the blue door shut as he did so.

The woman? She was a bit heavy, with short, blonde locks. But her acid, green eyes seemed to only carry warmth. She also seemed a bit like the grandmother type to Terra.

"Now, now, now, baby," the cook chastised Pence, as she sidled over to him, an air of sweetness in her voice. "You shouldn't say such things to our new guest, just because Xion has spoken to him… It won't be the same as last time. And don't you know why your mother brought him here?"

This certainly made Terra perk up, as he swiftly went to get a quick salad before coming back to join his new friends. Personally, he'd been beginning to wonder if Olette had just stuck him here in case she needed advice on being a werewolf, but that was much hubris on his part, wasn't it?

Pence, as it was, seemed to be thinking the same thing, and even glared at Terra the slightest bit. As he folded his arms on the table that Xion now seemed to be debating taking a nap on, he said, "No, that's not it at all! It's just because Kairi wants Sora back, so they can snog, smooch, make-out, or whatever it is they do. Xion was _her_ responsibility, too, and now even she's neglecting it!"

"Pence!" the woman that Terra would later learn was Larxene said, cutting off Pence's rambling with her eyes narrowed into slits: something that ticked off Terra, because he thought he was finally starting to get some info.

"No! It's tru-"

"Mister 'new employee guy', could you possibly lead me out of here? I'd like to see someone else."

The new horrible nickname be damned, Terra found that he was actually quite thankful for Xion's distraction. As much as he wanted to know what the heck was going on, he didn't exactly want to ruin the chef and Pence's relationship, either. Especially if there really _were_ some disappearances going on. If one of them happened to be a murderer, Terra didn't want the argument they were having-partly because of him-to lead to a new victim.

"I feel like maybe you're thinking much too much," Xion mumbled, as she grabbed onto Terra's hand and began pulling him away rather roughly. "Anyway, please lead me out of here. I always seem to get lost, myself. The white specks don't help, either."

The white specks-that had allowed them to see through the darkness to get here-didn't "help her"? So did that mean they somehow hindered her, then? Was she accustomed to the dark, or something?

"Sure thing, Xi-Xi," Terra announced with a bit of a fake smile, as he lessened her death grip on him, but only so he could hold her hand the proper way to begin guiding her.

It was only when they were in one of the dark halls again, and Terra remembered to take some left turns to get back to where they started, that he found it in him to implore, "and please call me 'Ra', like we agreed on."

Xion didn't say anything to his request. Instead, her face seemed to fall instantly, and Terra was left worrying that maybe all the smiles he'd been seeing in this place were completely fake.

It was about that time that the zoologist heard the clicking of Xion's toenails on the flooring as they continued on it, almost in some sort of particular rhythm. Feeling disgusted by how no one seemed to look out for this girl, Terra put a reassuring hand on her shoulder-something that seemed to make her eyes bulge-Terra demanded, "When was the last time you had your toenails trimmed? It seems that maybe that's something we should be considering getting done when we get back to your suit-"

"Call me 'Noi' again." And it was with the randomness that she asked this, the way that Pence and Larxene had been talking about her past caretakers, and the completely bittersweet grin on Xion's face, that made Terra decide doing such a thing would be an _awful_ idea.

"Come on now, Xion," Terra tried to tease her, keeping her from tripping over her own feet, as the fabric at the end of her legs got caught under them. "You don't want to be accused of having _too_ many nicknames, do you? That's why I just want to go by 'Ra'."

Xion was quiet again, and Terra couldn't help finding it unnerving. Contrary to how all the other people around her seemed to feel, Terra liked it much better when Xion spoke. Otherwise, she seemed much more like the "animal" that asshole thought her to be, and he didn't like that idea the slightest bit.

And eventually Xion _did_ find reason to talk again, in the form of steering him past her own space-once they got there-and to a part of the castle that Terra had yet to know existed.

"I don't want to go back to my study," Xion had complained again. "I want to go visit a certain person!" and apparently his charge was even leading Terra in that direction now.

Oddly, it was the fact that the walls were _no longer_ black and dimly lit that Terra began to panic.

This area... Well, it was not the type of change that Terra'd wanted at all! The white of the walls-and the sterile look of everything-looked far too much like a hospital. And Xion seemed to be wearing a hospital smock, so did that mean... did that mean she was being experimented on, maybe? Or what if this was a psychiatry ward?

"Xion, why is that seem to be the only outfit you have?" Terra started, beginning to feel a bit shaky.

And Xion's voice? It was completely monotone when she replied, "Why do you pretend you're here to defend my rights as a human, when really there _is_ more to it than that? By that logic, guess why I wear this."

Oh, Terra _definitely_ wanted to respond to that snappy attitude of Xion's He'd had no idea that she had such a twisted tongue. But all too soon, the moment was lost. Xion opened a rounded door of a black and white pattern, and she forced him into it.

It most certainly _did_ look like a hospital room, Terra found-his suspicions immediately proven. But despite what he'd been thinking before, about it being for the mentally ill, Terra was now of the mind that it was for the ill or diseased. Or maybe...

"Well, if it isn't Missy Xi-Xi. I can't believe it! It's been so long since I've seen you last, honey! Kairi finally let you out, eh?"

That particular voice had come from an elderly looking gentleman. He had long, white hair, pale eyes, and wrinkles that had probably only resulted from laughing too much.

And leaping in a way unbefitting of an old man, he quickly grabbed hold of Xion, tackled her into a nearby and vacant bed, and began tickling her.

And Terra, for just a moment, was able to pretend that he was simply taking his niece to see their sick uncle or something. Everything is normal and good. Yes... completely normal and real. Except for, of course, that nothing is.

"She shouldn't be here, Yen Sid!" came another voice, but this one of that of a woman: a woman who looked much the same as Yen Sid did. However, she had gray hair piled atop her head, and an affinity for pink. "She's disobeyed rules! She could have been hurt! She could have been destroy-!"

"Oh, put a sock in it, will you Flora? And let me adore this poor little girl! We're the only ones who have been here long enough to remember when she appeared, after all, and boy has she grown!"

Feeling rather out of place, and now wondering if he should've been allotting Xion to be here at all, Terra nearly fell into the Jaws of Life that were appropriately stationed against the far wall.

And, woe to him, when he did finally end up accidentally knocking the thing over, Terra found that all eyes in the room were now locked on him.

Xion laughed, and there was so much warm in her eyes that Terra found that he felt instantly happy... and also full of much regret.

"This," Xion said with crazy hand gestures towards Terra, that somehow didn't seem to be something that was usually a trait of hers. "Is my new... protector. Kairi, and... Well, Kairi can't do it anymore, so-"

"So you snuck out, then, dear girl?! Disregarded all that we've told you, and possibly leading your new beau to get fired?! Get _out_ , Xion. Get Out _now_."

Xion began crying, and Terra felt _horrified_. Somehow, he'd had the idea about Xion that she wasn't one to typically cry, but now that she was-via someone she seemed to love-he didn't know what to do. Her face, just a moment ago, had been so full of peace as she'd lain on that bed, having a tickle fest, and now... Well, Terra found that he very much wanted to scream, for her sake alone.

Xion quickly ran out the door, and was then again darting down the hall-seeming to trip over her two feet again as she did so.

Hurrying after her, though he made sure to give the old man and woman one last vacant look before departing, Terra helped her to her feet from where she had fallen. And the only thing he could think to do was to steer their conversation into the one they'd been having before all of this. "You see, Miss Xi-Xi? We need to cut your toenails so you don't trip as much. They make for better escapes, you see, so let's see to that straight away when we get back to your room, eh?"

At this new development, Xion whispered something into Terra's ear, but he didn't immediately make it out at first. He was too busy guiding her back to the room they'd first met in... The room where he somewhat seemed to like her attitude better, if he was being honest with himself.

But finally, his mind was able to work out just what it was that she had said. The words had been, "I'm seventeen."

Such a truth is much more than a shock to Terra, but he doesn't let his reactions or face betray it. Instead, he was able to find some humor in the situation, and gave her candor by saying, "Being around you makes _me_ feel younger than that, Xi-Xi."

"You make me feel younger, too, actually." Xion admitted, slumping against Terra, as he began carrying her the rest of the way to her room- seeming to even fall asleep as she did so.

She looked... _so_ innocent and free while she slept, Terra found, but he couldn't focus on that now. Instead, he apparently could only focus on how much a failure he was, for not knowing where her room was, and for leaving her to snooze away in her study.

It was when Terra was moving to put her in the armchair for the time being-and wondering once again why she was so badly looked after, though there was nothing he could do about it at the moment-that her dress somewhat fell away and he saw it: scratches right next to her left breast. Near her heart.

Why, oh, why, did it look like she was attempting to mutilate herself? Terra wondered with a hiss. Why did it even seem to be some sort of intricate design?

Oddly, as Xion's one arm began to swing to and fro, Terra got a good look at her nails, too. It was just as he'd thought. _They_ were overgrown, too. And more than that, the marks on her chest seemed to match perfectly to her right hand.

Was it- was it maybe for Xion masochistic tendencies that he'd been summoned? Terra found himself pondering, as his breath caught in his throat and a fire roared in the hearth.

Sighing for more reasons than one, Terra thought about contemplating Xion while she slept. But then again... she seemed utterly exhausted, so maybe he'd leaver her alone.

Tomorrow, Terra promised himself he would grill Xion for answers. But for now he would let her rest, and go write this all into his journal.

 **October 11** **th** **, 2015 (continued):**

 **I hadn't meant to write more today, but now I have reason to. Xion... seems to abuse herself. I found an odd series of scratches over her left breast, and there's no denying that they're self-induced. But what for?**

 **Also, Xion had her feelings hurt by some old hag today. Could that have been the reason for this in the past? Does she vent her frustrations through self-destructive manners, maybe?**

 **Another area of concern I have is that Xion's apparently been in this Asylum (for lack of a better word) before, and old hag as mentioned above seemed really jumpy about her being there again today.**

 **...There was also some sort of incident, I guess. I figure it was after she came out of her shell for the _first_ time, and now... Now Xion seems to be coming out of her shell again with _me_**...

 **I'm not _worried_ for my own safety, exactly. Xion seems very much like the good girl that Olette said her to be. Rather, I'm starting to wonder if she may have split personalities. **

**In the cafeteria once, and then some afterwards, Xion seemed somehow different. It wasn't until she visited Yen Sid (the elderly gentleman with the old hag, Flora) that she seemed to revert to the way she always has been.**

 **I'm also concerned about when she asked me to call her "Noi" again. She is relentless in forcing me to call her "Xi-Xi", so why would she ever drop the request in favor of something else?**

 **And other than Xion, there seems to be oddities all around. I can't help feeling everyone here is in on some big secret...**

 **And that Kairi girl… she seems familiar. And it seems that a man she love has been taken away, or something. But I won't push for any more information on _that_ subject.**

 **It even reminds me of how everyone seems to know not to speak too much of their mysterious employer. I'm starting to wonder if this "employer" even exists at all. Everyone seems completely at a loss when it comes to him, I mean.**

 **Terra paused in his writing, and tapped his pen against his chin for an instant. There was something else that he seemed to be forgetting, but he couldn't seem to put his finger on it...**

 **Deeming it as unimportant, Terra quickly went to the cafeteria, and got some real dinner for himself, before returning to Xion's side.**

 **While she still slept, Terra went over to sit in her drawing chair.**

 **Having a full belly, and being content in his knowledge that Xion was safe, Terra found himself falling asleep.**

…

A sheen of blue light flew into Terra's face the following morning.

He stretched, and rubbed his eyes a little bit, before taking in the illumination floating in through the ceiling window above him.

Winter, it would seem, was beginning to approach fast this year... So much for the yellow skies and pink clouds that he quite liked, Terra thought dryly. They'd all just have to make due with blue light, and some purple skies.

It was with this oh so horrible thought, that Terra paid a glance at Xion's pictures. Just yesterday, she had drawn that odd picture of the sky. Would she draw another one today?

With a slight yawn, Terra began looking under her table for her when he said, "Would you like me to teach you a great way to draw clouds today, Xi-Xi? With the new sky above us, there's no time like the present, I mean."

The still groggy feeling man hadn't been expecting an answer. And with the light of the new day invigorating him-despite taking away his favorite season while doing so-Terra'd decided he'd even be fine with such a thing. _But_... the fact that he wasn't hearing anything from her at _all_ didn't bode well, did it?

"Xion?" Terra tentatively asked, as he began looking through the rest of the room for her. No answer.

Walking as fast as he was able, but all the while feeling like he was being as slow as molasses, Terra noted that even Xion's small bathroom-the only other place she really could've been-was empty.

Terra looked back to Xion's small, red chair that he himself had slept on-hoping that she had snuck there when he wasn't looking-but no dice.

As he ran his hands through his hair, Terra tried his best not to panic. Maybe Xion had just gone to get something to eat again. Or maybe she'd gone to her actual bathroom. So why, then, did it seem like none of those ideas were plausible?

The answer, of course, came in the description of the job he was probably about to lose. He was her caretaker, so that meant that Xion needed help with all these sorts of things, right?

Oh, gosh... Why had he even _agreed_ to this job?! Terra demanded of himself, punching a fist into his hand. What had he been thinking?!

Terra was just about to search the entire castle for the girl, but a trashcan in his path ended up blocking his way.

Wouldn't you know that it would be in his worst moment that Kairi would walk in? The two of them collided again, but they were both able to stay on their feet this time, fortunately.

And immediately, Terra's eyes zeroed in on the envelope clutched in the redhead's hands. And her eyes looked tear struck.

"Xion's left, then?" Terra questioned, knowing there could be no other reason for her having approached him, or for her tears.

And unfortunately proving that Terra's suspicions were right, Kairi quickly wiped the water off her face, and put on an expression of absolute resolve. "It's my fault, really. She thought that I was still looking for… Anyway, she wanted to see _me_ , so she went outside. And by now... well, she has to be in the town!"

Terra _did_ not want to think about Xion in the city all by herself. Especially not in this weather, that seemed to be hinting at a blizzard, even!

Rummaging through his suitcase very fast, Terra quickly grabbed a jacket, and began heading for the door that he'd first entered this nightmare from.

"Where are you going?" Kairi asked him, bewildered, her eyebrows knitting on her face firmly. "Your job is to remain in the castle. It's _my_ job to-"

"I don't _care_ about any of that! Look... the faster we move, the more likely we are to find her. We're wasting time now, and so I'm going."

And so Terra stepped through the door, flying through the dragon's memories as if they were a waterslide.

And as the brunet heard a whooshing sound behind him, he knew that Kairi was right behind him.

Looking at the snow that had all ready begun to gather, Terra tried very hard not to imagine Xion alone somewhere, unconscious in a snowdrift.


End file.
